Identifying Your Child’s Communication Milestones

As a parent of a child between the ages of one month and five years old, you’re probably wondering how you can identify your child’s communication milestones. When it comes to healthy speech and hearing development, these are undoubtedly the most important years of your child’s life. Below you will find developmental milestones which represent, on average, the age by which most children will accomplish the listed skills.

Children typically don’t master all items in a category until they reach the upper age in each age range. Although this range is a great guide that you can use to monitor your little one’s progress, just remember that every child is unique and has an individual rate of development. Keep in mind that your children may not necessarily have a disorder if they haven’t accomplished one skill within an age range. Here’s a brief summary of the important communication milestones.

Birth to One Year

Birth to 3 Months:

During these months, your baby should start communicating with others by smiling at people, making cooing sounds, and crying. Although your baby is so young, there are still ways to know if he/she responds to you and the environment. If your newborns gets quiet when you talk, jumps at loud sounds, or seems to recognize your voice, you can rest assured that they’re on their way to understanding you.

4 to 6 Months:

Does your 4 to 6 month old listen intently and/or dance to music, respond to toys that make sound, recognize changes in your tone of voice? The great news is that these are normal benchmarks for understanding. When it comes to talking, your newborn should be giggling, laughing, cooing, and babbling when happy. They should also be making sounds when they’re upset.

7 Months to 1 Year:

As you newborn approaches one year old, he/she may increase communication by saying one or two words, pointing to objects, and using hand gestures. Here are some of the common signs you should be aware of when determining if your newborn understands you: responding to his/her name, recognizing words for common items/people, playing simple games with you, listening to songs and stories, and looking when you point.

One to Two Years

At this stage in your child’s life, he/she should be putting two words together, naming pictures in books, using many new words/phrases, and asking simple questions. Are you wondering if your child understands you? If he/she is responding to simple questions appropriately, following directions, listening to stories/songs, and identifying body parts when asked, then your child is on the right track.

Two to Three Years

When your child is between two and three years old, he/she should be talking about things that aren’t in the room, asking “why” a lot, and making short sentences. To determine if your toddler is progressing normally at this age, ask yourself these questions: Do they understand opposites like big/little and up/down? How well do they follow two-step directions? Can they comprehend new words quickly?

Three to Four Years

During the three to four-year range, your child should be making sentences with plural words, saying rhyming words, talking about his/her day, and asking “when” and “how” questions. Most people should be able to understand what your little one is saying. But are your children understanding you? Here are some ways to know: They respond when you call them from another room. They understand the words for colors and shapes. They know the words for family like “brother,” “aunt,” “grandpa,” and “sister.”

Four to Five Years

Before your children enter kindergarten, they should be well on their way to talking like an adult. For example, you may notice that they know the letters and numbers, keep a conversation going, say all speech sounds in words, and tell short stories. How do you know if your child is successfully understanding you for their age? They should be able to follow longer directions, understand words for time, and respond appropriately to most of what you’re saying.

Schedule a Hearing Screening Today

Are you concerned about your child’s speech and hearing development? Serving the Northeast Florida Area, our experienced professionals are here to monitor your child’s key communication milestones. Let us help you by setting up a consultation today!